Pope Francis speaks his mind, often with surprising results. Earlier this month, he wrote a letter to the Italian newspaper La Repubblica in which he said that God’s mercy extends to atheists and agnostics, urging them to follow their consciences. This week, the New York Times published a letter written by Vladimir Putin on the subject of Syria, in which he invoked the Pope’s opposition to military intervention.

Whatever one’s faith – or lack thereof – there is no escaping the fact that Francis is emerging as a world statesman. Part of his impact in the six months since he was elected is down to the huge change in style that he has brought to his position. He has begun efforts to reform the Church’s bureaucracy, refused to live in the opulent Apostolic Palace, and even taken to “cold calling” the faithful to offer moral support – including a victim of rape and a man whose brother had been murdered. While his predecessor, Benedict XVI, seemed swamped by the challenges he faced within the Church, Pope Francis has proved to be outward-looking. As the first Latin American pontiff, he has brought a cultural perspective from the New World to the Old, and tried to tie together core Catholic teaching with global concerns. The profound symbolism of a Pope washing and kissing the feet of 12 Aids patients is one of humility, of building a Church for the poor.

It all brings to mind the papacy of John Paul II, who used his moral authority and identity as a Polish pope from a country besieged by communism to challenge the political order. “The Pope! How many divisions has he got?” Stalin is said to have once sneered. Of course, the answer is “none”. But wise words can spark revolutions and tear down walls – and Francis is emerging as a Christian soldier of the first rank.